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Care Packages – What It’s Like on the Receiving End

Regular blog readers often hear about our USO Care Package stuffing parties. Just within the last few months we’ve had the kid’s one, the one just for families, the Female Care Package, and the one that engaged celebrities. And those don’t even include the almost-weekly “regular” care package stuffing parties that happen without any fanfare and with the support of hundreds of volunteers.

The story we don’t often tell – simply because we often don’t know – is what happens with the care packages after we bag and box them up, and send them off to airports and centers around the world. How do Troops react when they receive their care packages? We’ve worked hard to create a program that fulfills the requests of things we’ve been told that Troops want to see in the care package. But are we right? Are they getting what they want and need?

Imagine our excitement when we received this story from USO Pat Tillman Programs Manager Charlotte Del Vecchio:

“These Marines were stranded at the Airfield with all of their bags stuck on a pallet elsewhere. They were headed down range and the Squad Leader came into the center and wanted to know if we had any toiletries to hold them over. We did better than that, and distributed the care packages to them, within 30 minutes of the request. The Marines were so grateful – and they loved the calling cards and gummy lifesavers too!”

Awesome! Thanks, Marines, for your service. We’re glad to make the trip a little better for you. Have YOU received a USO Care Package? What did you like about? What can we improve? Let us know!

HUGE thanks to the USO and people like Charlotte who are supporting great efforts to provide top notch programs and entertainment for our Troops! Your efforts are appreciated, just as so many of us appreciate the service of our Troops and the sacrifices they/their families make each day.